Trick 'r Treat

Trick 'r Treat (2007)

Runtime: 82 minutes

Directed by: Michael Dougherty

Starring: Dylan Baker, Rochelle Aytes, Anna Paquin, Brian Cox, Leslie Bibb

From: Warner Brothers

Here is a film that is quite appropriate for the night, given its title and how it's all set in a Halloween night in the strange little town of Warren Valley, Ohio, where little kids say that Charlie Brown is an A-hole and supernatural things are going on all over the place. Sad to say, for whatever reason (it's never been made clear) Warner Brothers treated this film like crap-possibly because they were mad at the people who created this for stupid reasons-and while you might remember it being advertised on the DVD for 300, its planned 2007 wide release never happened and after keeping it on the shelf for far too long, it was dumped on DVD in '09 with little fanfare and that's a bunch of crap, as this never deserved the treatment. It deserved to become popular and be better known amongst people who would want to watch it on this day every year for years to come.

I don't want to give too much away but there are several stories which occasionally briefly intersect with each other and they deal with such things as a mysterious masked man going after Anna Paquin-dressed as Little Red Riding Hood-a principal who isn't what he seems, little kids going to a spooky abandoned quarry, and cranky old Brian Cox dealing with something quite weird. And often you get to see a short mysterious cloth sacked/masked figure who is simply known as Sam.

Overall, this is a horror anthology that is a lot of fun. Sure, you see gore but it isn't too extreme at all. It goes dark places for sure, but there's also a decent amount of humor. It's been compared to Creepshow and that isn't the worst comparison at all. The opening credits even invite such a comparison. It's not really too scary or terrifying. It's more about reminding you of being a kid and going out to Trick 'r Treat, where you hear creepy stories and your imagination goes wild. It captures that essence quite well and if you dig the holiday you should also dig this. On first viewing you should enjoy the ride especially as not everything is as it fist appears to be.

I'll be back Friday night.